KNIGHTS gamebreaker Bradman Best "hasn't played too much footy this season" and is keen to "get on with it" against the Broncos on Thursday night despite an unprecedented four-day turnaround.
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Best made a stunning return from ankle surgery, crossing for a try and setting up two, in the Knights' 34-24 win over Canberra on Sunday.
"It was definitely good to be back out there playing with the boys," said Bradman, who spent seven weeks on the sideline. "I wanted to come back a bit lighter. The game is evolving and it is a bit faster. I trained really hard and made sure I got my body right.
"It is always tough watching from the sidelines. I knew what I had to do and wanted to nail my job.
"I dropped about three kilograms. I did notice it [on Sunday]. I felt a bit lighter, a bit faster on my feet."
Best combined with halfback Jake Clifford and fullback Kalyn Ponga on the left edge to tear the Raiders to shreds.
Centre-turned-winger Enari Tuala was the beneficiary, crossing for a hat-trick of tries.
"Our forward pack got us on the front foot," Best said. "Running off Cliff and K, we got our attack on and our left side was pretty good.
"It wasn't really a target. In the game it just flowed and came off like that. It was definitely good to get a bit of footy and get our combinations going."
The Broncos have lost right centre Kotoni Staggs to a knee injury. Asked if the Knights plan to attack the left edge again, Best said: "We will stick to what works for us. Hopefully we can replicate what we did on the weekend. That will come down to us playing well and getting on the back of our forwards. They create momentum and we execute it."
The Knights are likely to have one training session to prepare for the Broncos, who are fresh from a 37-18 triumph over the Cowboys on Friday night.
"It is about getting the body right," Best said. "Doing all the recovery and prep that I normally would but touch on that a bit more
"I guess we will get one training session in. We have to make that one count. It will be a bit different with a four-day turnaround. I haven't been able to play much footy this year due to a few injuries. It is what it is and we will get on with it."
The Knights had been scheduled to play the Raiders on Saturday but a snap COVID lockdown in Brisbane caused chaos and forced games to be put back a day.
"Saturday was a pretty weird day," Best said. "You wake up thinking that you are playing. You do all your prep, Bedsy calls a team meeting, you rush in there and he says we could be potentially playing in Townsville, go pack your bags and prepare to play."
The match on Sunday was confirmed at 10pm Saturday night.
"There was a bit of mayhem but it was definitely good to play," Best said.
Strict conditions in the bubble require players to have daily COVID Tests and with four teams using the pool and training field, sessions are on strict schedules.
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James Gardiner
James Gardiner, chief football and rugby writer at the Newcastle Herald.
James Gardiner, chief football and rugby writer at the Newcastle Herald.
